Freak
by MaryandMerlin
Summary: What magic was Ariana Dumbledore doing that made those boys attack her? One-Shot


**Author's Note: This isn't really a stand alone, but it doesn't fit into any of my collections. So you'll just have to deal with it as is.**

 **Herbology Assignment:**

 **Write about a muggle child resisting some natural phenomenon due to bouts of accidental magic and people's reaction to it. Extra Prompts: (word) magic, (expression) fear.**

 **Monopoly:**

 **Ariana Dumbledore**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise!**

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Freak

"Ari! Ari, where are you?"

Ariana Dumbledore popped her head through the thick hedge that lined her garden and looked left and right down the street. She had leaves in her long hair, but a big smile on her face. "In here Chris, hurry!"

She pulled back into the garden, stumbling with the force and waited patiently for her friend to appear. With her boundless curiosity and six-year-old's outlook on life Ariana was a pleasant child. Cheerful and inquisitive she was rarely cheeky, rude or stroppy and brought a smile to everyone she met.

She didn't know where her brothers were at the moment, her father was at work and her mother was out the front talking with the neighbours. They were quite a tight-knit community here in Mould-on-the-Wold and everyone knew everyone else. Though they still made the effort to keep their magic a secret from those few muggles that lived in the village.

The hedge in front of her shook violently, small green leaves flying everywhere as the small boy, only a few months older than Ariana herself, pushed himself through the gap. Chris popped through with such force that he fell on his face and Ariana burst into a peal of high-pitched giggles. The boy glared up at her, his light hair falling in his eyes, and picked himself up grumbling quietly.

They were neighbours, separated only by the quiet country lane, and their mother's often met up for tea and cake in the afternoons. They had become fast friends, even though Chris and his parents were only muggles. There weren't many other children around here and Ariana didn't get on with the other little girls.

"What do you want?" she asked skipping down the garden. He looked uncharacteristically shy as he followed her slowly down the garden and a frown marred her smooth little face. "Chris?"

The boy opened his mouth and looked at Ariana, but quickly shut it again forcefully shaking his little head. "I just wanted to play," he mumbled, "I was bored."

Accepting this as a perfectly logical reason to come over, Ariana didn't question him further and instead launched into a rant on all the games they should play.

Over the next hour the two children ran and screamed and laughed and played, as children do. Their imaginations turned the floor to lava, and the trees to pirates and they fought bravely to save the beautiful princess from her horrible fate. They were having so much fun that neither noticed the sky growing dark or the temperature dropping until it was too late.

Ariana shrieked as the skies opened and, with a rumble of thunder, dropped their cargo on her. She raced for the house from the bottom of the garden as thick, cold drops of water splattered on her head and arms, rolling down the back of her neck.

"What's wrong?" Chris shouted, his eyes wide with fear as he watched the girl flee.

"It's raining!" she shouted back at him, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"No, it's not," he insisted and Ariana stopped running. She was already soaked to the bone, her hair stuck to her face and her skirt clung to her legs but as she looked back to Chris she saw that even though he was stood in the middle of the garden, he was bone dry.

The two six-year-olds stared at each other, one wet, one dry. Chris had come to stand in front of Ariana and though the rain poured down on her there seemed to be an invisble bubble that repelled any rain that might fall on Chris.

"Magic?" she screeched, bounding forward after a moment. Once she crossed the boundary line the rain stopped falling on her, though she was obviously still soaking.

"I, I, I don't know." Chris looked around, his eyes wide with fear, as he watched the rain falling everywhere else. "It can't be?"

But Arianna wasn't listening, she was too busy bouncing around with excitement. "Oh Chris, this is wonderful! You have magic! You can come to Hogwarts with me and my brothers and we'll be friends forever!" She grabbed his hands, and began to twirl in a circle, dragging the confused young boy with her.

Her laughter was infectious, though, and Chris soon found himself laughing also all fear gone as Ariana told him all about the magical school as they span around on the spot, in the rain but completely dry.

"Look at that freak!"

"What are they doing?"

"How are they dry?"

Chris gasped as, suddenly, the rain started to fall on him again. It was a cold, sharp, wet surprise as the spell was broken and the magical shield gone. Chris and Ariana stopped spinning and turned to look at the source of the voices. Three boys, about eight or nine years old stood next to the gap in the hedge gaping at them.

Fear stole across the younger children as they observed the older children who stalked across the garden towards them.

"How did you do that?" the oldest, and fattest, child demanded coming to a stop in front of Chris. He seemed to shrink in the face of the threat and began to shake violently. "Come on, tell me! Or I'll make you tell me," he insisted holding up a meaty fist. Behind him, his friends laughed.

Chris began to shake his head, he really didn't know how he had done it, but it didn't look like the bully would take no for an answer.

"Leave him alone!" Ariana piped up bravely, pushing her way between them, "it was me, not him," she insisted. Tiny hands fisted at her hips.

"Well then, little girl," the biggest bully sneered, "how did you do it then."

"I don't know," she replied, "and even if I did know I wouldn't tell you!"

The bully glanced around at his friends and smirked at them. "If you aren't going to tell me, then were just going to have to make you!"

"Hey! You can't hit a girl!" Chris said, looking angry.

"No, but I can hit a freak."

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 **Much Love, MaryandMerlin x**


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